#BeyondProfit: How Jollibee Group Is Helping Smallholder Farmers Become Entrepreneurs
Around the world, hunger, undernutrition, unequal access to education and economic insecurity continue to affect millions of families. Smallholder farmers struggle to secure reliable markets for their produce, disadvantaged young people face barriers to education and employment, and disaster-affected communities often need immediate access to food. Addressing these challenges requires more than short-term assistance. It calls for sustained partnerships that strengthen livelihoods, expand opportunities and help communities become more resilient.
The Jollibee Group, one of Asia's prominent restaurant companies, has embraced this broader responsibility through the Jollibee Group Foundation (JGF), its social development arm. Established in 2004, the foundation works with government agencies, non-profit organisations, educational institutions and local communities to promote food security, education, sustainable livelihoods and disaster resilience.
Through five key initiatives, the Jollibee Group demonstrates how businesses can create meaningful social impact alongside commercial growth. These efforts offer compelling examples of #BeyondProfit, showing how corporate resources and partnerships can help communities build better futures.
1. Farmer Entrepreneurship Program (FEP): Helping Smallholder Farmers Access Bigger Markets
Smallholder farmers play an essential role in feeding communities, yet many struggle to secure reliable buyers, develop business skills and negotiate favourable market terms. Without access to established commercial supply chains, their ability to grow their farms and earn a stable income can remain limited.
The Jollibee Group Foundation launched its Farmer Entrepreneurship Program (FEP) in 2008 to help address these challenges. Rather than treating farmers simply as agricultural producers, the initiative helps them develop into agro-entrepreneurs capable of supplying institutional buyers, including the Jollibee Group.
The programme works with local governments, non-profit organisations, financing institutions and other partners to organise farmers into groups and cooperatives. Participants receive training, mentoring and technical assistance to improve their agricultural knowledge, business planning, leadership and marketing capabilities. Through collective selling, farmer groups can coordinate production and deliveries to meet the volume and quality requirements of larger buyers.
According to the company's 2025 Sustainability Report, 1,625 smallholder farmers from 18 farmer groups supplied produce directly to the Jollibee Group in 2025, delivering approximately 2,739 metric tonnes of vegetables. Smallholder farmers accounted for 31% of the company's vegetable requirements that year. A preliminary impact assessment also found that long-tenured participating farmers earned 50% higher incomes than comparable non-participating farmers in the same locations, although these findings should be understood as preliminary rather than definitive proof of causation.
2. Busog, Lusog, Talino (BLT) School Feeding Program: Helping Children Stay Nourished and Learn
Child hunger and undernutrition remain significant obstacles to educational participation and development. For children who arrive at school hungry, concentrating on lessons can be difficult, while families facing financial hardship may struggle to provide nutritious meals consistently.
In the Philippines, the Jollibee Group Foundation launched its Busog, Lusog, Talino (BLT) School Feeding Program in 2007 to help address undernutrition among public-school children. The initiative supports the government's School-Based Feeding Program by working with educational institutions, local authorities and community partners to provide nutritious meals to children who need them.
A key development was the introduction of BLT Central Kitchens in 2016. Instead of preparing meals independently at every school, a central kitchen can prepare and distribute food to several nearby schools. This model helps improve operational efficiency, food safety and the ability to serve more students through coordinated delivery.
The foundation's 2025 reporting on its 20-year milestone stated that the programme had provided nutritious meals to more than 300,000 students since its launch. This reflects the potential of sustained school-feeding partnerships to address immediate nutritional needs while supporting children's longer-term development.
3. Access, Curriculum, and Employability (ACE) Scholarship Program: Opening Pathways to Education and Employment
Access to education and employment remains unequal across many communities. Young people from economically disadvantaged households may be unable to afford further education or vocational training, limiting their prospects of securing stable employment and helping their families move out of poverty. The Jollibee Group Foundation addresses this challenge through its Access, Curriculum, and Employability (ACE) Scholarship Program, which has supported underprivileged Filipino youth since 2005.
The programme goes beyond providing financial assistance for education. Through partnerships with technical-vocational institutions and other educational organisations, it combines scholarship support with curriculum development, practical training, internships and life-skills education. The objective is to help students complete their studies while acquiring skills that prepare them for the workplace.
ACE has developed learning pathways in areas connected to both the food-service industry and agriculture. These include Quick Service Restaurant Operations, which prepares participants for work in restaurant environments, and agro-entrepreneurship, which encourages young people to explore agricultural enterprise as a viable livelihood. The foundation has also supported training in technical fields such as mechatronics.
The foundation's programme information records 2,754 scholars supported since 2005 on its ACE Scholarship Program page. By helping young people access training and develop workplace skills, the initiative seeks to broaden their career choices and create opportunities for greater economic independence.
4. Jollibee Group FoodAID: Delivering Food Assistance During Disasters
Natural disasters can disrupt food supplies, damage infrastructure and leave families without reliable access to meals. In the immediate aftermath of a typhoon, flood or other emergency, getting food to affected communities can be as important as providing shelter and other essential supplies.
The Jollibee Group consolidated its disaster-response efforts under Jollibee Group FoodAID in 2013. The programme focuses on preparedness, rapid response and continued recovery support, drawing on the company's food-related capabilities and partnerships to help communities affected by crises.
FoodAID mobilises employees, volunteers, donors, non-profit organisations and other partners to distribute meals and food assistance. The company's experience in preparing and handling food products can be particularly useful during emergencies, when affected families may have limited access to cooking facilities or regular food supplies.
The programme's impact has extended across multiple emergencies in the Philippines. At its 20-year milestone in 2025, the Jollibee Group Foundation reported that FoodAID and its partners had served more than 18 million meals to disaster-affected communities since 2020, including 3.4 million meals distributed in 2025 alone.
5. Agri-Tech Facilitator Program: Equipping Farmers to Share Agricultural Innovations
Agriculture faces growing pressure to improve productivity while responding to climate risks, resource constraints and changing market conditions. Smallholder farmers may benefit from new agricultural technologies and climate-smart practices, but access to relevant training and trusted technical guidance can be limited.
Building on its work with farming communities, the Jollibee Group Foundation developed the Agri-Tech Facilitator (ATF) Program to help farmers identify, test, adapt and share agricultural innovations within their own communities.
The programme trains selected farmer leaders to act as local facilitators. Instead of depending entirely on outside experts, farming groups can draw on trained members who understand local conditions and can help their peers explore practical improvements. The training supports farmers in identifying technologies and practices that may improve productivity, profitability and the sustainability of their agricultural enterprises.
The initiative complements the Farmer Entrepreneurship Program. While FEP focuses on developing farmers' business capabilities and connecting them with institutional markets, ATF strengthens their ability to learn about and share agricultural innovations. Together, the programmes address different challenges facing smallholder farmers: access to markets and the capacity to improve how they farm.
Bottom Line
The Jollibee Group Foundation's initiatives address different but interconnected challenges. What makes these efforts truly praiseworthy is an emphasis on partnerships and practical capabilities. Rather than relying solely on one-off charitable contributions, the foundation works with schools, government agencies, farmer organisations, training institutions and community groups to develop solutions that can be sustained and expanded.
These programmes also demonstrate how a company can draw on its existing strengths to contribute to social development. Its experience in food sourcing, preparation and distribution supports hunger-relief efforts, while its relationships with agricultural suppliers create opportunities to strengthen rural livelihoods. Partnerships with educational institutions and local organisations extend that work into skills development and community resilience.
Ultimately, the Jollibee Group's social development work shows that a company's impact can extend beyond the products it sells and the customers it serves. By investing in livelihoods, nutrition, education, emergency assistance and agricultural capability, it demonstrates the broader possibilities of #BeyondProfit– where business resources help create opportunities for communities to thrive.
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